Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

Healthy Claire Donahue ready for US Olympic Trials

London Olympic gold medalist Claire Donahue on Wednesday, August 22, 2012. Donahue is a swimmer from Lenoir City who earned her medal in the 4×100-meter medley relay. (Saul Young/News Sentinel)(Photo: Saul Young)

The path Claire Donahue has traveled the past year typically has led directly to a swimming pool or a weight room.

Any sort of monotony has been eclipsed by a sense of relief. Sure beats getting diverted to a doctor's office.

'This year I've been pushing myself as hard as I can,' Donahue said during a phone interview June 15, 'making sure I'm doing all the little things.'

Donahue, who grew up in Lenoir City and graduated from Lenoir City High School, has something big in mind, namely a second trip to the Summer Olympics. Donahue said that she will swim in the 100- and 200-meter fly at the U.S. Olympic Trials, which begin Sunday in Omaha, Neb.

She swam in the 2012 Games in London and won a gold medal as part of the 400 medley relay. She also set a personal best in the 100 fly at 57.42 seconds.

Since those Games, Donahue said she's had surgeries to remove her appendix and tonsils. She also endured a bout with mononucleosis.

'It's been one thing after another,' she said. 'This has been one of my most consistent years (training-wise) in the last four years.'

Feeling better reinforces Donahue's overall well-being. She thinks being 27 years old still places her squarely within her prime swimming years. The career of some of her U.S. teammates support her viewpoint. For example, Natalie Coughlin intends to swim three events at the Trials at age 33.

'You're just wanting to do the best for yourself,' Donahue said. 'You always want to be the best swimmer you can be. A lot of times that's the big motivation.'

And that incentive involves those 'little things' she spoke of, which constitute an attention to detail.

In her case, it involves more stretching and related activities before hitting the pool for the day's biggest workout.

Along with weights, there's more stretching and also yoga a few times a week.

'It's an active recovery,' said Donahue, who's been training in South Florida. 'You have to make sure you're recovering in the right way.'

Eating right goes hand in hand with such activity.

'Some days I don't want to cook and I'll order a pizza,' she said. 'It's funny, you feel it in the water. You don't feel as good in the water.'

Donahue said she was feeling apprehensive about the Trials until recently. Then she entered the three-week window where she started visualizing the competition and her outlook changed.

'Once I started to do that, the nerves started to go away,' she said. 'Ever since I was a little kid, I've loved racing.'

Donahue isn't inclined to look past Omaha. Still, she's aware of issues related to the Games in Rio de Janeiro, most notably the threat of the Zika virus. The World Health Organization reaffirmed recently its previous advice that only pregnant women should skip the Aug. 5-21 Olympics.

'I've been on the U.S. team for five years,' Donahue said. 'They've always taken very good care of us whenever we've gone to foreign countries.'